Belonging Poetry Anthology

• 'At home, told dad, I hate dem, all dem Jamaicans - I'm British' - Jamaican British
• 'Half Caste, half Mule, house slave - Jamaican British/Light skin, straight male, privileged -Jamaican British' - Jamaican British
• Half-caste, half mule, house slave – Jamaican British.

  Light skin, straight male, privileged – Jamaican British.

  How does this stanza (3rd) showcase his internal struggle with his racial identity?

  1. Racist phrases - First line

  2. British heritage - second line

  Clash between past and present - History and heritage

  Battle based on others perception of his identity, which influences his ideas
• Jamaican British has Iambic Pentameter until 'Half-caste...'.
• 'you cannot love sugar and hate your sweetness' - Jamaican British
• 'When knowing how to war is Jamaican British' - Poem finishes without having any resolution to his questions. Accepts that this internal conflict might be a fundamental part of being Jamaican British
• 'Jamaican, British?' - Jamaican British

  Ceasura forces the reader to pause between the two nationalities, creating a clear physical divide symbolic of the poets own internal struggle
• Iambic pentameter - In wales wanting to be italian
• Rhetorical question and ambiguous opening add to sense of confusion and uncertainty, allowing the reader to feel as confused as the poet - In wales wanting to be italian
• Semantic field of longing and desperation created by lexical choices such as 'longing' 'wanting' and 'dying' - In wales wanting to be italian